1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an operation of jobs linked to be executed by a plurality of devices connected to a network.
2. Description of Prior Art
In an office environment, various devices such as a multifunctional peripheral (MFP), a printer and a server are connected to a network. They are shared, and a user in a device connected to the network can instruct a job to another device in the network. Further, jobs for devices connected to the network are sometimes linked to be executed for example successively. Then, a function for instructing such a linked operation of jobs is equipped in a device. The contents of such a linked operation is called job scenario, and a concrete flow of linked jobs is called a workflow.
In a workflow, devices to run the jobs described in a job scenario are specified in order to realize the linked operation. For example, in an image processing system described in Japanese Patent laid open Publication 2000-341455, capabilities possessed by the devices to be used in a linked operation are acquired and stored. When a linked operation is set, it is presented for a user, who can select devices easily and surely for executing the desired linked operation.
When a workflow using a plurality of devices in a network is stored, it can be executed easily, if necessary, by reading it. However, it may happen that a function of a device used in a workflow is changed. As to a multifunctional peripheral, for example, a function such as double-side printing is added, or an application program such as optical character recognition, image processing or file format conversion is added, or a version update of a function equipped therein occurs. In a system described in Japanese Patent laid open Publication 2000-341455, possessing capabilities of devices used for a linked operation are stored. However, if one of the functions in the devices is changed, a workflow related thereto may not be used. Therefore, it is desirable to make it easy to reflect a change in the functions of the devices in workflows easily.